But general fund spending on public safety is actually similar to years when the city staffed nearly twice the police force it now does.

Join us on the Saginaw MLive site at 1:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 17, for a live chat on the future of public safety in Saginaw. City police and fire representatives, Saginaw County Sheriff William Federspiel and city officials have agreed to answer your questions on the topic.

Saginaw City Council budgeted nearly $20.9 million for public safety in the current fiscal year, 2012-2013. That was enough to staff a 91-officer department, though most of 2012 has seen a significantly smaller police force.

Saginaw City Manager Darnell Earley speaks during a special one-issue Saginaw City Council meeting Thursday, Dec. 13 at Saginaw High School. The meeting was held to address city finances and proposals, including a possible contract with the Saginaw County Sheriff's Department.Colleen Harrison | MLive.com

According to city staff, the departure of officers during the ongoing hiring freeze has resulted in a current police force of about 75.

In the 1993-1994 city budget, leaders allocated nearly $18.8 million of the general fund for public safety. Those same two years, the city reported staffing 140 and 150 officers, respectively.

If you look at public safety spending as a proportion of total general fund spending, Saginaw has actually been spending more revenues on police and fire in the last eight or nine years than in the decades previous.

Soure: City of Saginaw financial statements, budget documents

On average, Saginaw's city leaders spent about 58 percent of the general fund on public safety from 1985-95. For the next ten years, that average rose to about 62 percent.

In the years since 2005, Saginaw has spent about 65 percent of the general fund budget on police and fire. According to the 2012-2013 budget, about 66 percent of the general fund was allocated for public safety.

That said, Saginaw has a lot more in its general fund to spend than it did in 1985.

Total general fund expenditures rose from nearly $24.4 million in the 1985-86 budget to a high of nearly $38 million in the 2000-01 budget.

Source: City of Saginaw financial statements, budget documents

Since then, the annual general fund budget has shrunk again to where it sits now, at nearly $32 million in the 2012-2013 budget.

But budgeting too much for police, fire and other city services is exactly what the city's financial experts say has gotten Saginaw into a position where it needs to either cut millions or face bankruptcy.

The general fund's reserves, which as recently as 2001 had a healthy balance of more than $7.7 million, have been nearly completely depleted, according to city staff.